Mohammed Fadel (name also spelled Muhammad Fadil; born 22 June 1938) is a veteran Egyptian television and film director. Fadel, along with Osama Anwar Okasha and Inaam Mohamed Ali, is credited in Egypt for establishing the genre of Egyptian dramatic serial television.El-Assyouti, Mohamed. When less was more . Al-Ahram Weekly. 2005-11-02. He is considered a "godfather" of Egyptian television serials.El-Assyouti, Mohamed. Lunar transmissions . Al-Ahram Weekly. 2005-11-12.
Career Fadel began his career in the 1950s in radio.Abouissa, Mona. Behind the microphone . Al-Ahram Weekly. 2008-10-05. He wrote a number of television series in the 1960s and 1970s, the most notable of which was the comedic soap opera Al-Qahira wa-l-nas ("Cairo and the People"), which was themed on modernity and cultural authenticity. Divided into half-hour segments, the show was similar to American sitcom television, making it unique in Egyptian media during its time.Armbrust, 1996, p. 16. Afterwards, he directed a psychological film Etnen Wahed Sifr ("2-1-0") (1974) starring Salah Zulfikar, it was a breakthrough, followed by the Ramadan soap operas Abna'i Al-A'izza', Shukran ("Dear Children, Thank You") in the late 1970s, Rihlat El-Sayyid Abul-Ela El-Bishri ("The Journey of Mr Abul-Ela El-Bishri") in the 1980s, Li Dawa'i Amniya ("For Security Measures") in 2005,El-Assyouti, Mohamed. Mixed bag . Al-Ahram Weekly. 2006-09-06. and Sekket el-Hilali ("El-Hilali's Path") in 2006.Mustafa, Hani. Soap and sin . Al-Ahram Weekly. 2006-11-18.
His reputation was significantly raised with his television series "White Flag" (1989), written by Okasha. The show was set in Alexandria and dealt with Egypt's wide income disparity, criminals-turned-wealthy, and Egyptian high life.Asante, 2002, pp. 121-122. Fadel directed the 1982 romance film Hobb fil Zinzana ("Love in the Prison Cell") starring Soad Hosny,El-Assyouti, Mohamed. Action-hero dynasties . Al-Ahram Weekly. 2005-03-25. the first film on Egyptian president Gamal Abdel Nasser in Nasser 56 (1996) starring Ahmed Zaki,Hammond, 2007, p. 20. and Egyptian singer Umm Kulthum in the 1999 film Kawkab al-Sharq ("Star of the Orient").Hammond, 2007, p. 167. The latter starred Fadel's wife, veteran actress Ferdous Abdel-Hamid.El-Bishlawi, Khairiya. A woman for all seasons . Al-Ahram Weekly. 1999-06-16.
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